A study on the monitoring of gonadotrophin therapy by the assay of plasma oestradiol and progesterone.

Abstract

SummaryPlasma oestradiol and plasma progesterone were measured daily during 19 courses of human menopausal gonadotrophin (HMG) and human chorionic gonadotrophin (HCG) given to ten infertile women. The response to HMG was judged by the concentration of plasma oestradiol and an adequate response was taken as an oestradiol level within, or just above, the range of values found in a group of ten normal women during the pre‐ovulatory peak of oestradiol concentration.Ovulation was induced in ten courses and three women became pregnant. On five occasions there were high oestradiol levels but symptoms of overstimulation occurred only once. The height of the pre‐ovulatory oestradiol peak and the hormone levels in the subsequent luteal phase were correlated. Parallel measurements of urinary oestrone excretion showed that the urine values lagged by 24 hours behind the changes in plasma oestradiol. The use of plasma estimations made it possible to administer HCG at an earlier stage thus diminishing the risk of overstimulation.